Unlikely Heroes in the New TestamentSample

Day 1: You are an unlikely hero

One of the most beautiful things about the way that God works is that He chooses to use unlikely people for His purposes. What we see in the Bible is that God chose several unlikely heroes to advance His kingdom. In this devotional, we’re going to look at the lives of six people who were unlikely heroes from the New Testament. We’ll look at who they are, how Jesus encountered them, the transformation that ensued, and what the result of that transformational encounter was.

In story after story we see the same thing: that all it takes is one encounter with Jesus to radically change a person’s life. When people are radically changed, they can’t help but share the good news of who Jesus is and what He’s done for them. Their habits and perspectives change, and Jesus gives them a new life and purpose. There's a reason for this: Our witness and our testimony are powerful tools that can lead other people to the Lord. It’s important to know that regardless of what you’ve been through, your past, your challenges, the sins that you’ve been entangled in or anything else - there is a simple truth that rises above them all:

You are never disqualified from being used by God.

In fact, God delights in using unlikely people for His glory. As we look at the lives of the Apostle Paul, the woman at the well, the man with the legion of demons, Mary Magdalene, the Ethiopian eunuch, and Zacchaeus, we will see not only that they were encountered by Jesus in different ways, but that God used each of them uniquely to advance His kingdom. All of them on the surface are unlikely people to be used for the advancement of the gospel. Yet, from God’s perspective, they were perfect to execute His plans. And so are you.